O’Donnell named for ALP’s Monash ticket
Baw Baw Shire councillor Jessica O’Donnell will be the Australian Labor Party candidate for Monash (currently McMillan) at the next Federal election.
Cr O’Donnell’s pre-selection was confirmed by the party’s Victorian branch last week.
She will take leave of absence from council after writs for the election, that must be held by the middle of next year, are issued and her nomination is formally submitted.
If unsuccessful in her bid to win McMillan she would resume her council role.
The 30 year-old Drouin mother of four in a blended family that includes three step children, was elected for Baw Baw shire’s west ward at the council elections in 2016.
Cr O’Donnell said it wasn’t until earlier this year that she started to consider putting herself forward as a possible candidate for the Federal election.
She doesn’t see any issues continuing to serve as a councillor ahead of her official nomination for the seat.
“I have a line in the sand between being a councillor and a candidate” and high standards when it comes to governance, she said.
Ms O’Donnell said her underlying principle of “not sitting back and complaining if you can do something about it” had been central to her attempt to be elected to Federal parliament.
Passionate about young people, equality and inclusiveness she said she believed there were things that can be done it make life a bit easier for many.
There are significant financial pressures on young people and women that dominate most casual employment, Cr O’Donnell said, directing criticism at cuts to penalty rates for weekend work for many in retail, service and hospitality industries.
She also said she had a strong sense of community, especially Gippsland, where she has lived all of her life, the past seven years at Drouin.
Cr O’Donnell will aim to unseat current Liberal Member Russell Broadbent who has held McMillan from 1996-1998 and since 2004. He was previously the Member for Corinella from 1990-1993.
Mr Broadbent retained the seat in the 2016 election with a two-party preferred vote of 56 per cent, five per cent on the previous election, from the ALP’s Chris Buckingham on 44 per cent. Eight candidates stood in the election. As well as the name change to Monash that will apply from the next election there have been changes to the electorate’s boundary.
The Pakenham growth area has been removed and placed in outer suburban Latrobe.
The final redistribution of boundaries also returned Bunyip North, Garfield North, Maryknoll, Tonimbuk and Tynong North to the new Monash electorate.
Sitting Member for McMillan Russell Broadbent will no longer live in the electorate, with the redistribution transferring the Pakenham growth area to the Latrobe electorate.
Monash also will gain Koo wee rup, Lang Lang, Grantville and San Remo from the Flinders electorate.